1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a device for supplying a long length of a material such as a metal strip, wire, thread, and the like, the long length of material being formed from, for example, a thin belt-shaped material for forming tubes which are used for the cores of a radiator or heater of an automobile.
2. Description of the Related Art
Known tube manufacturing systems utilize an uncoiler holding a thin belt-shaped material in a coil-wound state, the material being fed from the uncoiler to the subsequent process to be formed into tubes. When the coil-wound material on the uncoiler is used up, a new coil of material is mounted on the uncoiler and the starting end of the new coil of material is welded to the finishing end of the previous coil of material. At this time, if the manufacturing system must be stopped to enable this joining to be effected, the operational availability of the system is reduced because of this stoppage. To eliminate this temporary stoppage of the system, Japanese Unexamined Utility Model Publication No. 58-66025 discloses a material supply device constructed in such a manner that a material is alternately folded in long lengths and held in a casing, and air is blown between the folds to ensure that the material unfolds smoothly when being fed to the next process. That is, the conventional material supply device must be provided with a blower which blows air onto the folded material and a power supply for driving the blower.